Vol45Issue9

Clackamas Community College, Oregon City, OR

Volume 45, Issue 9

The Clackamas Print

ince 1966

www.TheClackamasPrint.com

An independent, student-run newspaper since 1966

Students fall for rock climbing class

By Isaac Soper Arts & Culture Editor

Photo illustration by Brad Heineke The Clackamas Print

The sheer exhilaration of using all of one’s strength to climb a vertical wall with handholds less than a centimeter thick is staggering.

If this sounds interesting or fun, there is a rock climbing class at the college and to the surprise of many, there is a rock gym in Randall Hall. In fact, Clackamas Community College has offered rock climbing courses for approximately 30 years. Over the course of time, multiple instructors have come and gone.

Currently Clackamas alumnus, Marlin Kendall is leading the charge.

At the start of the term, the class goes through the basics of climbing equipment, knots and climbing safety; after the first few days of class the students are mostly on their own in the rock gym, free to climb and hone their skills. The short lecture part of the rock climbing class takes place in the second story of Randall, in R219 and then later moves into the rock gym, which is located behind a locked door at the top of the tallest stairwell connected to Randall.

Please see ROCK, Page 4

Esther Haikkila scales the climbing wall in Randall Hall as fellow students prepare their equipment. Students learn the basics of climbing safety, especially how to tie correct and secure knots with their climbing ropes.

College remembers board member killed in accident

By Joshua Dillen Associate News Editor

Cougars off to stellar start Page 6

ure in the completion of Niemeyer Hall amidst project cuts and named Oregon City’s 2009 Citizen of the Year. Through his work, Clemans will be remembered for years beyond his incredible life.

Things would not be the same in Oregon City or on campus without Clemans influence throughout his years of service.

A slide show compiled by Shelly Parini titled “Remembering Chuck,” started the ceremony with pictures of Clemans throughout his life. Memorable photographs were accompanied by heartfelt quotes and stories from his many mourning friends that reinforced his greatness.

The presentation told a tale of a man that had a passion for skiing, race cars and boating in addition to his contributions to education and arts.

Please see CLEMANS, Page 2

Internet censored?

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Photo illustration by Brian Baldwin The Clackamas Print

A celebration of life is truly what happened when the many friends, family and colleagues of Charles “Chuck” Clemans gathered to honor the former Clackamas Community College Board of Education Chairman. Clemans sat on the board from Dec. 12, 2001 until his passing late last year. The somber mood of attendees on the chilly winter afternoon was soon uplifted.

On Jan. 7, the crowd of people who filled nearly half of Randall Hall Gymnasium was sad, yet exuded respect and adoration. The grief seemed to soften as the bleachers filled. The sadness of Clemans’ tragic death on Dec. 22 in a single car accident near Mulino was obvious, yet partly replaced with a genuine feel-

ing of how great and awe inspiring his life had been. They murmured with pride to have known such a well loved and accomplished man.

Clemans was 77 years old when he died. He had been recovering from a serious injury from a fall and brain surgery in July of last year.

For more than 30 years, Clemans was an advocate for art, education and civil rights in this community.

“I don’t know when he slept,” said David Smith-English, theater arts instructor, during the service.

“His fingerprints are everywhere.”

Anyone who has ridden the Municipal Elevator in Oregon City has experienced the history of its construction through the art placed there. Clemans was part of the Steering Committee of the Clackamas County Arts Alliance, which coordinated the art that depicts the history of the elevator’s construction. He was a central fig-

Chuck Clemans ran against a student last spring and retained his seat in the election.

Tuskegee Airmen fly high

Page 5

2The Clackamas Print

Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012

newsed@clackamas.edu

News

All photos by Joshua Dillen Photographer The Clackamas Print

CLEMANS: Solemn celebration for successful career Continued from Page 1

After an inspiring performance by the Chamber Choir, former Mayor of Oregon City Alice Norris, as Mistress of Ceremonies, introduced Joanne Truesdell, CCC President.

Truesdell started her speech by saying how honored the college was to host this celebration. There were emotional pauses, yet her voice made it clear what an important man he had been to her.

Truesdell told of a time when Clemans had asked her “Did I serve my moment well?”

“Chuck, you have served your moment well,” she replied to conclude her speech.

Norris introduced speakers including Frank McNamara, who worked with Clemans at Portland Public Schools.

“He was concerned about all children, not just his [students],” he said in his speech. McNamara reminisced about how he served the district with integrity and creativity.

Norris mentioned Clemans was part of the first graduating class of Portland State University in 1956 as she introduced the next speaker, Jack Hammond.

Hammond read a letter from Don Smithers, who had been Clemans’ friend since 1968. The letter told a tale of a man that loved to race and boat. In it, Smithers stated, “He was not only faster but he was smarter too!”

Other speakers included Smith-English, who made it clear that Clemans was responsible for the completion of Niemeyer Hall. When funds ran out and the project looked like it would not happen, Clemans was there to energize the project.

When Clemans agreed to help, you heard a sigh of relief that could be heard all the way to Canby, according to Smith-English.

“He [Clemans] was filled with integrity and humor with a twinkle in his eye,” said Smith-English.

Clemans’ wife, Nancy Hungerford, spoke next. She said he was a great family man and the love of her life.

“Diagnosed with COPD last spring,” Hungerford said, “he could still beat me in badminton and swing me around the dance floor.”

The reception that followed was filled with friends and family recounting their experiences with Clemans.

“It’s amazing how this tribute brought it all together,” said Jim Perkins when describing how much Clemans had done for the college and community. Perkins is a retired coach, teacher, counselor and vice principal from OC high school. He worked with Clemans for 30 years.

Don Tank, retired Assistant Superintendent of OC school district, said Clemans was a great leader and had a great sense of humor.

“He was amazement to everyone, and will always keep us in awe and will never be forgotten,” said Clemans’ son Dean. He expressed his thanks from himself and family to CCC and all the volunteers who helped organized the service “Love and strength are what it takes to be a grandfather like mine,” said Tabitha Lambert, Clemans’ granddaughter.

Staff

The Clackamas Print aims to report the news in an honest, unbiased and professional manner. Content published in The Print is not screened or subject to censorship.

19600 Molalla Ave. Oregon City, OR 97045

Above: Wife of late Chuck Clemans, Nancy Hungerford, shares a few laughs with granddaughter Tabitha Lambert at memorial in Randall hall on Jan. 7.

Below: Family and friends begin to fill the bleachers as the ceremony of life begins. More than 100 people attended the memorial.

Editors Editor-in-Chief: Brian Baldwin Copy Editor: Katherine Suydam News Editor: Patty Salazar Associate News Editor: Josh Dillan Arts&Culture Editor: Isaac Soper Sports Editor: John William Howard Photo Editor: Hillary Cole Web Editor: Anna Axelson Design Editor: James Duncan Ad Manager: Brad Heineke

Board seeks new member to fill opening

By Brian Baldwin Editor-in-Chief With the untimely passing of Clackamas Community College Board of Education member Chuck Clemans, the seat representing Oregon City is now vacant. After declaring a vacancy at the Jan. 11 board meeting the board members can now begin interviewing candidates to temporarily fill the Zone 4 seat. Whoever is to be appointed by the board will remain as that seat representative until the next election in May 2013.

According to board member Ron Adams,

Writers & Photographers Nora Goodman Hiroaki Hayashi Mark Sunderland Chris Taylor Adviser: Melissa Jones 503-594-6266

the applicant must be appointed from within Zone 4, but the application process has not yet been completed and candidates have yet to be interviewed.

“No one has been interviewed, although we will make certain that the applications come from within boundaries based on the most recent census,” stated Adams in an e-mail.

Adams is unaware of any specific written qualifications that the board may have drafted to filter candidates through. Jane Reid, the current board of education chair, was unavailable for comment.

Production Assistants Christian Adams Mollie Berry Breanna Craine Tyler Eheler Joey Fisher Jaronte Goldsby Telicia Goodman

Hicham Kerkour Ellen Niles Darla Nguyen Emily Rask Audra Alanina Evon Trembly Sharon Wetmore

Contact Information chiefed@clackamas.edu copyed@clackamas.edu newsed@clackamas.edu aced@clackamas.edu sportsed@clackamas.edu photoed@clackamas.edu admgr@clackamas.edu webeditor@clackamas.edu

Opinion

newsed@clackamas.edu

Wednesday, Jan 25, 2012

The Clackamas Print

Opinion

By James Duncan Design Editor Since their introduction to the U.S. House of Representatives on Oct. 26

by Republican representative of Texas, Lamar Smith and Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democratic senator of Vermont, the “Stop Online Piracy Act” and its sister legislation, the “Protect IP Act” have sparked controversy and a national debate concerning freedom on the Internet.

The two bills, which are being financially backed and pushed by the entertainment industry and politicians who receive most of their funds from donations from major media corporations, seeks to give the government power over “rogue websites” that are beyond U.S. jurisdiction by adding them to an “Internet Blacklist.”

The proposed blacklist would use the Domain Name System which translates website names like “www.Google.com” into the IP addresses that computers use

to communicate. The legislation would also allow copyright holders to force payment processors like PayPal, credit card companies and advertisers to sever their ties with a website simply by sending out a notice, which they would have five days to comply with before action would be taken. The bill would also expand existing criminal laws to include streaming of copyright material, imposing a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

The goal is obvious; the entertainment industry wants more power to deter pirates from sharing their intellectual property and causing them financial losses. The legislation in its current form is so broad that nearly anyone and everyone who uses the Internet would be at risk of being shut down or sued.

Laws to allow copyright owners to issue take downs of material from websites already exist in the form of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and in 2007, Universal Music Group abused that power when they went after Stephanie Lenz for her 29 second YouTube video of her baby dancing around her kitchen as Prince's “Let's Go Crazy” played on the radio. With the help of the nonprofit digital rights advocacy group, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Lenz was successful in fighting back against Universal in a countersuit, claiming fair use. If SOPA and PIPA were made law, court cases like Lenz’s would have very

different outcomes and fair use might become a thing of the past.

The most troubling thing about SOPA and PIPA is that copyright holders can completely bypass due process, so they don’t even need to have a court trial at all. All they have to do get a site taken down is make an allegation of infringement, and many common Internet activities would fall under their definition of infringement.

For instance, the popular Internet series “The Nostalgia Critic,” in which the eponymous reviewer, Doug Walker, reviews movies and television series in a comedic manner would cease to exist, and could land the creator in jail and the website which hosted the content would be blacklisted if it failed to comply with a takedown notice within the allowed time. Another popular Internet series, in which James Rolfe, known as the “Angry Video Game Nerd,” reviews poorly designed games from aging 8-bit and 16-bit consoles such as the Nintendo Entertainment System, the Super NES, and Sega Genesis, could be prosecuted and have his videos taken down.

Performing a cover of a popular song and uploading that recording to YouTube would become a crime, as would sharing the lyrics to songs on websites like Songmeanings, LeosLyrics or Sing365.

Copying and pasting or quoting lines from movies, television shows or copy-

Illustration by Anna Axelson The Clackamas Print

Internet controversy sparks viral debate www. .com

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righted books would also be criminalized.

The online art community, DeviantArt, is an outlet for many users creative expressions, it’s also host to numerous fan-made artworks which involve copyrighted characters from movies, TV shows, cartoons and video games, which under SOPA and PIPA, would put the user-base and site at risk of being fined or taken down.

Services like Google’s “Google Images” search engine, which indexes nearly 10 billion images from websites around the world, could also be subject to the power of copyright holders who would ultimately view the website as a haven of infringement.

SOPA and PIPA were barely mentioned on TV news, but in the wake of rolling Internet black outs, more people are becoming aware and taking a stand.

Our generation stands at the edge of decisions that could lead to the death of the Internet as we know it today. No more arrows to the knee or auto-tuned news and no more Rick Roll! The beautiful art of parody and satire that the Internet has let flourish could be lost to us almost overnight. But, worst of all ... we might have to pay for cable to watch network television and be watching it at the time it airs! So get out there and call your state senator, write a letter, or just talk about it with your friends. Act now before the Internet belongs to SOPA.

B15476

4The Clackamas Print

Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012

aced@clackamas.edu

&

Arts Culture Illustration by Anna Axelson

ROCK: Climbing to new heights Continued from Page 1

After asking the students to put on their harnesses, which they did quite well, Kendall made sure that all of the students’ harnesses had the proper requirements for use. He told the students that there are two types of buckles that are found on rock climbing harnesses and brought two of his students to the front of the class to display the two types.

“If you can see the word ‘DANGER­­ ,’ you’re doing something wrong,” said Kendall.

In the traditional sport of rock climbing, there are two distinct roles that people take: one is the climber and the other is the belayer, which is the person who controls the rope for the climber so that they can climb, lower and in certain circumstances, fall, safely.

After explaining the part that climbers and belayers play, the class went through the process learning to tie a “woven figure eight” knot, which would later be used to secure the rope to the climber’s harness. After visually inspecting the class’s knots, Kendall reminded them that at the end of the term they will have to be able to tie a perfect one while blindfolded.

Once the students have an understanding of the figure eight, they went through the ins and outs of using the belay device.

Kendall explained that, with the knowledge of how to tie the knots and use the belay device, it is a fool-proof system, though he jokingly described his nervousness to the class, being their first night in the rock gym.

As the class transitions into the rock gym,

By Katherine Sudyam Copy Editor

Joe Bloomenberg attempts one of the harder climbs available in the rock gym during the Thursday night rock climbing class.

Kendall explained as one of his intermediate students demonstrated the process of climbing. Kendall set up his belay device with one end of a climbing rope and his climbing demonstrator, student Sadie Tegtmeier, tied in to the other end of the rope. He explained that for this night only, he would be checking off students to make sure that they have set up their knots and belay devices correctly and that later, he would assume that students have checked each other’s equipment.

“We’ve never had really any type of accident, let alone a serious accident,” said Kendall.

After tying the rope and setting up the belay, the two presenters checked one another’s gear and began to go over the “universal climbing commands.”

Once Tegtmeier was ready to climb, she called out “On belay,” to which Kendall returned “Belay on.” When the climber made sure the belayer was ready, she called out “Climbing,” to which the belayer returns with “Climb on.” After the demonstration was finished, Kendall allowed the class to start setting up their gear to get checked and then climb. For the majority of the climbing session, he walked around, explaining to students what not to do.

“

In April 2012 a ‘90s favorite returns to the big screen, “Star Wars: Episode I.” The movie that made many a now twentysomething-year-old virgin squeal like an 8-year-old girl will premiere in 3D. With so many movies released in 3D you might wonder what most people prefer, watching a podracer crash into a canon wall or having that same podracer crash out of the screen and into their face? The results are in and the answer is astounding, Clackamas Community College students prefer standard 2D movies. “[I prefer] 2D because 3D gives me a headache, and the glasses don’t fit well over my glasses,” said Taira Avrill, CCC student. There were many reasons why CCC students prefer 2D, the headache caused by watching a 3D movie is the most common of these.

One thing students always have to think about is how to get the most bang for their buck.

“Beauty and the Beast,” was rereleased in 3D Jan. 13 and one adult ticket to a 3D matinee at Century Clackamas Town Center costs $11.25, while the same ticket to a 2D showing is only $7.75, saving you $3.50.

“They’re asking [for] a lot more money in theaters, which I think is silly for something that is not that amazing,” said Becca Smith, CCC student.

The downside to this deal is the decreased amount of showings that some cinemas are offering in 2D. If you are thinking about catching any film in 2D, then plan ahead; they have two showings of “Beauty and the Beast” in 2D and seven in 3D at the Clackamas Town Center, and many theaters don’t have 2D counterparts to their 3D films.

Most people think that 3D isn’t anything special. It may work for some movies, but for most it is just going to force your hand into that bottle of aspirin.

“I prefer 2D because 3D is a technology we’re not used to yet, we’re not terribly sure where the quality is going to be and they’re still kind of working out the kinks on it,” says Lance Dakotakruesky, CCC student.

“I actually saw ‘Avatar’ in 3D and I think that was kind of cool as far as 3D goes.”

Whatever your preference is there is an upside, plenty of our childhood favorites will be seen on the big screen again.

If you can see the word ‘DANGER­­, ’ you’re doing something wrong.”

“You have to be able to control your limbs under stress and under pressure,” said CCC student Phil Boisselle.

The rock gym on campus is currently only open during class hours on Thursday nights, but there are many great places to climb outdoors in Oregon. “[A great local place to climb] is French’s Dome in Zigzag.It’s nice, it’s close by, in Sandy.

It’s good for beginners and intermediate climbers,” said Phill Stacey, CCC student and three time rock climbing class student.

Smith Rock and Beacon Rock are among Kendall’s favorite climbing locales.

To see more photos, check out the online version of this story at www.theclackamasprint.com.

Lucasfilm

All photos by Brad Heineke The Clackamas Print

Ranae Faircloth shows off her nimble climbing skills. Behind her Phil Boiselle belays for Amber Bandasith.

Marlin Kendall Rock Climbing Instructor

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Arts Culture

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The Clackamas Print 5

Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012

Illustration by Anna Axelson The Clackamas Print

Student ponders technological growth

By Isaac Soper Arts & Culture Editor We live in an age that the only limit to our invention seems to be our imagination. What was science fiction 50 years ago is just science today. Hell, what was science fiction five years ago is realized today. Although I foresee socioeconomic collapse before the invention of time travel, string theory shows that we are well on our way.

I was born in 1989. The first time I used a computer, I was in grade school (Apple II, a color similar to my pasty white legs with a beautiful 5 1/4” floppy disk and a green screen with neon green text). The first video game I can remember playing was “Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt” dual cartridge on the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was a place where typing skills paid off much faster than my D’Nealian cursive writing skills, which are about as good today as they were in third grade. In fact, I was told that I would use cursive for the rest of my life, I guess they lied to me about that and who “discovered America.”

The Internet has been both helpful and detrimental to our society. We’ve gone from having to read something in

a book, to looking it up on Yahoo, to Wikipedia. A sliding scale from credible to what Wikipedia was five years ago — no sources and open to all for editing. Information that was once kept in books, on records, in file cabinets, in mailboxes, in movie theaters and 20-sided dice has been digitized, compressed and formatted to our hard drives, to make our lives easier and more organized; sleeker, sexier and smaller.

Every bell and whistle has been replaced with an ultrabright LED and a floppy drive playing the “Imperial March.”

What is the benefit to this “digital age” we are born into? Sure, we have instant access to information via the Internet, the ability to communicate with someone thousands of miles away through various mediums and the ability to download anything ever digitally created for free, I mean for 99 cents via iTunes, what does it matter? These technological advances take away the reason for us to leave the comfort of our own homes, let alone our couches. I can watch a movie instantly on Netflix, download a video game on Steam and get everything else I need via Google Shopping. Goodbye cruel world, hello computer.

I remember being 15 without a cell phone, while all of my friends had them. I thought that it was so stupid, an

unnecessary thing to carry around with you, because if you really needed to make a phone call, you could use a payphone or by God, wait until you get home. A few days ago I misplaced my cell phone; it felt like the end of the world to me. I was worried that my friends would assume that I was either an asshole or dead, since I don’t use Twitter and I’m rarely on Facebook.

For years now, we’ve had access to cell phones that include other programs so that we don’t have to wear cargo pants and an army jacket with a hundred pockets to lug around my rotary dial phone, a calculator and a few board games or a Sega Genesis. This may all be very convenient, but dare I ask, what happens when it all gets taken away?

What if the SOPA internet censorship law passes and free information becomes a thing of the past? If we are put into a “digital dark age,” in which we’ll only be able to access what seems acceptable to a government standard? What happens if that massive solar flare occurs and all of the electronics on earth are fried? I don’t think that we’ll all die because of our addiction to our iPhones but then again, as C-3P0 commented about R2-D2, I have been known to make mistakes ... from time to time.

Red Tails flies out of history

By James Duncan Design Editor Despite what I was expecting, as it was produced by George Lucas, and his last few films were just okay at best, “Red Tails,” was good. I was surprised by the depth of the characters and gripping story.

“Red Tails” stars a number of excellent actors including Nate Parker, Terrence Howard, Cuba Gooding Jr., David Oyelowo and Tristan Wilds. Their brilliant performances bring to life the characters on the screen and though there are a few moments where the acting gets a little thick, they can easily be forgiven.

“Red Tails” was able to capture me almost immediately with explosions and the beauty of World War II aircraft, moving on to take us through the struggles and triumphs of the Tuskegee Airmen, who were the first group of African American pilots to serve in the US Army Air Forces.

The program was meant to be a failure from the beginning but because the brass set the bar so high for applicants, they only got the best of the best. By the end of the war the Tuskegee Airmen became one of

the most highly decorated groups in the US Army Air Forces. They were even responsible for the first surrender because of only aerial attack!

The story follows a group of the Tuskegee Airmen through their lives in the war. Marty ‘Easy’ Julian (Parker) and Joe ‘Lightning’ Little (Oyelowo) are the main focus of the movie, while all the characters play a major role in the overall look and feel; they face their victories, losses and the death of friends, but that is only part of what makes “Red Tails” so good. There is also a heaping serving of WWII dog fighting action, complete with an evil Nazi bad guy and flak!

“Red Tails” holds you all the way through. While some moments are less amazing than others and some of the story feels a little contrived in parts, overall this movie keeps the viewer involved by balancing the “chaka chaka” of machine guns and the voices of the characters, finding that balance of action and drama that makes a good WWII movie. There are awe inspiring, edge-of-your-seat moments.

You will find that when the pilots meet the inevitable end of most WWII pilot, you care. By the end of Red Tails I cried.

Courtesy of Lucas Film

6The Clackamas Print

Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012

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Sports

Women’s basketball finds unexpected success Cougar post Jordin Feldman looks to swat Hannah Mocaby’s (right) basket attempt in last week’s home win over Mt. Hood Community College.

Team jumps to impressive 15-2 season

By John William Howard Sports Editor It’s a little odd to describe a season that has gone 15-2 as ‘up and down,’ but that’s exactly how sophomore Tiara Fuller put it last week during a lull in practice, waving her hand up and down while doing her best to keep her eye on the court.

Coming into the season, the expectations for Clackamas Community College Cougars women’s basketball team were high but not that high. A lot of sophomore talent moved on, including much of the scoring and even more of the leadership. Perhaps to spite the critics, the Cougars (15-2, 4-1 South) have been impressive so far, leading the league in scoring, assists and steals.

Co-Head Coach Jim Martineau, however, isn’t entirely satisfied. Flashing a wry smile after the home win over Mt. Hood Community College last Wednesday, Martineau said that’s just how it was being a coach; you can always get better.

One part of the game that the Cougars could stand to improve in is exactly what Fuller referred to: consistency, but not always consistency game to game.

Much of their consistency problems are half to half. Either the defense will be on or the offense will be, but not both at the same time. Interestingly enough, both defense and offense play much better when playing in front of their own bench, something that has been a constant point of discussion in practice.

“It is always easier to play in front of your bench because you hear your coaches telling you what needs to be done and helping you see things that you might not see right away,” said freshman guard Jenny Johnson. “Also, you hear your teammates talking to you and when you make a good play, they’re right there being loud and that’s the only thing you hear, which is an awesome feeling.”

Because a team can’t play both halves in front of their own bench, Martineau has stressed talking on

Lindsay Kanalz fights for control of a rebound against Mt. Hood. Kanalz scored an impressive 19 points on 58 percent shooting against Mt. Hood.

Makesha Bizon drives to the hoop during the game against Mt. Hood. Bizon had nine points, all scored from beyond the three point line.

All photos by John William Howard The Clackamas Print

Freshman Jenny Johnson looks to score during last week’s 82-66 victory over Mt. Hood. Johnson had 10 points in the rivalry victory.

defense from the beginning of the season, something that came up again after Clackamas gave up 48 points in the second half against Mt. Hood. Much of the next day’s practice was spent with Martineau on the court with the team, leading by example and shouting instructions to his teammates, imploring the others to do so as well.

“We have our moments where we are very good at talking to each other on defense, and we have our times where we are silent,” said Johnson. “But every day our coaches stress it and every day we work on getting better at it. I believe we are improving on it. I’m not perfect at it and our team isn’t but as long as everyone is making an effort at getting better at it, then that’s all I can ask for in my teammates.”

Martineau’s fears of being taken advantage of by a good team have only been realized twice, the first being a 72-53 loss to Yakima Valley Community College. It was a game that featured 32 turnovers by Clackamas and a season low 35 percent shooting. It also featured a dramatic exit by Martineau when he was ejected from the game after his second technical, apparently for the first time in 15 seasons.

Since falling to Yakima Valley in the championship of the Clackamas Crossover tournament on Dec. 18, Clackamas has outscored opponents by an average of 17 points in their four wins, including an 83-50 victory at SW Oregon Community College to open region play on Jan. 7. The Cougars finally fell on Jan. 21 at Lane in a close, 71-68 defeat in one of the NWAACC’s toughest gyms.

Adding to the success so far is the return of Ashleigh Anderson, a freshman from Oregon City High School that sat out much of her senior season recovering from several surgeries. Anderson came off the bench in Clackamas’ home opening victory over Chemeketa, bringing cheers from the crowd of her former teammates and friends that were in attendance.

“It means the world to me,” said Anderson, who has improved each game despite favoring her knee and shaking off a year’s worth of rust and nerves. “My whole family was here, all my friends from CCC came [and] it’s just really nice to have so much support.”

Anderson’s return will add further depth to a team that already has been led in scoring by six different players and should boost their already decent three point shooting.

All stats aside, the mental and physical toughness that Martineau pointed out before the season began has continued to show through. Clackamas might not fire on all cylinders offensively and defensively at all times but they always work hard for every loose ball and every rebound. Once their talents all line up the Cougars will be darn near impossible to stop.

Sports

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Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012

The Clackamas Print 7

Men’s basketball struggles over break

By John William Howard Sports Editor

Sophomore post Brett Ball attempts a lay-up in the Jan. 18 game against the Mt. Hood Community College Saints. Ball had 12 points and a game high 11 rebounds.

Upcoming home games: Today at 7:30 p.m. vs. Portland CC / Feb. 4 at 6 p.m. vs. SW Oregon

For the Cougars mens’ basketball team, last week’s home loss to region rival Mt. Hood Community College told the story of much of the season thus far.

After a quick start, Clackamas found themselves in a hole that was seemingly too deep to climb out of. The home team then went on a run, lighting up the scoreboard and electrifying the fans that turned out for the second home game of the young regular season. With less than two minutes left, Clackamas (8-9, 2-3 South) found themselves within striking distance of the region-leading Mt. Hood (14-5, 5-0 South). The opportunity, however, fell short and the Cougars walked off the court losers of two home games consecutively.

The first home loss to Chemeketa Community College was eerily similar. The game seemed lost until it neared the end of the second half, when Clackamas made a fantastic run to tie the game and had possession with four seconds left. The play was broken and the shot at the buzzer went off left, sending the game to overtime, where Clackamas would fall 100-88.

“Our biggest asset is that we are in every game,” said sophomore guard Taylor Dunn, who combined for 42 points in the two losses. “We are not getting blown out by superior teams; we just aren’t doing the little things necessary to win. We need to take a lot of confidence in the fact that we can play with anybody [and] we just need to learn how to finish.”

Ever since the thrilling 79-70 win over Tacoma Community College, a perennial power house from the western region,

things have looked gloomier.

The low point has to be the back to back losses to Walla Walla Community College and Clark College, where Clackamas set consecutive career lows of 53 and 52 points in the tenure of head coach Clif Wegner.

Since that particularly bad stretch of games, Clackamas has had only two bad losses. Those have been to Bellevue College, the only undefeated team in the league, and Peninsula College, the defending league champs.

Of the other losses, four have been by five points or less and in all four games, Clackamas found themselves trailing late in the second half, only to claw all the way back to respectability and lose a close game.

“The team has lack of focus at the end of the second half and we tend to break down when we’re down a few trying to make a comeback,” said Andre Dickson. “We tend to go out of our offense and take bad shots, which makes our defense have to work twice as hard in transition.”

It seems to be that way in several facets of the Cougars’ game. Several times in the Mt. Hood game alone, Clackamas would play fantastic defense for 33 seconds but would give up a shot or a foul and bail out the Saints at the last second. On the offensive side, Clackamas works hard and gets offensive rebounds but often bobbles the ball and either misses the resulting shot or gives the ball away entirely.

While the road ahead for the remainder of the season won’t be easy, Clackamas may have a bit of a break in the storm when Portland (0-15, 0-5 South) comes to town. Portland is averaging just over 50 points a game and is the only winless team in the league. Portland and Clackamas will face off tonight at 7:30 p.m. in Randall Hall.

All photos by John William Howard The Clackamas Print

Cougar guard Jake Dewitt shoots for the basket during the Clackamas Holiday Invitational on Dec. 28, 2011. The Cougars won the game 85-66 against the Blue Mountain Wolves. Clackamas took second in the tournament, falling in the championship game to Peninsula College.

8The Clackamas Print

Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012

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